ASSOCIATION OF NATIONAL GRASSLANDS, INC.

JULY 2017 NEWSLETTER AND ANNUAL MEETING INFORMATION

2017 Officers
President
Bob Harshbarger
1162 Lynch Rd., Newcastle, WY 82701

President Elect
Dan Anderson
c/o Grand River Grazing Association
P.O. Box 538, Lemmon, SD 57638

Vice President
Frank Tomac
9999 57th Ave., SW, Watauga, SD 57660

Sec-Treas.
Joan Cantrell
23954 Recluse Rd, Philip, SD 57567

NOTICE
TO ANG MEMBERS

Original government docu-

ments concerning the ac-
quisition of grasslands can
be very powerful evidence
in advocating permittees
rights. If you have, or know
someone who has, original
documents that may be of
help to ANG, please con-
sider providing a copy to
our ANG Archives by send-
ing it to:

P.O. 184
Hot Springs, SD
57747

General membership ARTICLE III.

A quorum shall be the members present at
voting change any meeting. The right to vote at General
Membership meetings shall be limited to
At ANGs 37th Annual Business those permittees (one vote per member-
Meeting held in the Fall of 2015, sever- ship legal entity, family or partnership) who
al proposed changes to the Associa- operate wholly or in part on National
Econo Lodge tions By-laws were considered. Grasslands and are current with their an-
nual dues, either individually or through
Pierre, South Dakota Among them was a change to those their Grazing Association.
eligible to vote on ANG business. This -Change motion and approved: September 15, 2015
110 East Sioux Avenue
Pierre, SD 57501 change allows for more folks to be a
part of ANGs business decisions.
(605) 224-5951
Register for ANGs Annual Meeting by calling 605-745-3228
or email lance_russell@yahoo.com NO REGISTRATION FEE!
www.nationalgrasslands.org ASSOCIATION OF NATIONAL GRASSLANDS, INC.
JULY 2017 NEWSLETTER AND ANNUAL MEETING INFORMATIONPAGE 2

Thunes New Farm Bill Legislation Updates

Livestock Disaster Programs and Grazing Options
Particularly now, when producers in South Dakota and other states
in the Northern Plains are suffering through an increasingly severe
drought, we should be talking about ways that we can provide greater
assistance to the farmers and ranchers who need it

WASHINGTON June 29, 2017

U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), a longtime member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, today, as part of his ongoing
effort to introduce multiple proposals to be included in the 2018 farm bill, unveiled new legislation that would make several common-sense updates
to the Livestock Forage Program (LFP) and Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP), both of which are Thune-authored programs. Thunes bill would get
LFP assistance to farmers and ranchers twice as fast and improve the approval rate of LIP payments for weather-related livestock deaths. The
legislation would also make a technical correction to the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 that would give permittees greater flexi-
bility when grazing on National Forest Grasslands.
My farm bill rollout is a two-way conversation, and after hearing several concerns raised by farmers and ranchers throughout South Dakota, Ive
proposed making several common-sense updates to the livestock disaster programs that I authored in 2008, said Thune. Particularly now, when
producers in South Dakota and other states in the Northern Plains are suffering through an increasingly severe drought, we should be talking about
ways that we can provide greater assistance to the farmers and ranchers who need it, and my latest proposals would help.

Updating LFP:
Using the U.S. Drought Monitor as a trigger for county eligibility, LFP provides monthly feed loss assistance payments, which are based on a
feed-cost-per-head that is indexed to the price of corn for grazing livestock.
Thunes bill would modify LFP language to allow a one-month payment when a county reaches the D2 (severe drought) category for four con-
secutive weeks, compared to eight weeks under current law.
When a county reaches D2 for eight consecutive weeks, it would be eligible for another months payment.
Other payment categories for D3 (extreme drought) and D4 (exceptional drought) are unchanged under Thunes bill.
An eligible livestock producer can receive a maximum of five months of LFP payments per head in one year.
Updating LIP:
LIP provides payments for eligible livestock deaths that are in excess of normal mortality rates and due to natural disasters, like blizzards,
extreme heat, high winds, and certain other weather events.
Thunes bill would strengthen LIP by specifying that livestock deaths, resulting from an eligible weather-related disease, be eligible for LIP if
the death is verified as weather-related by a licensed veterinarian.
It would also specify that USDA shall not use management practices, vaccination protocol, or lack of vaccination, with respect to livestock
losses due to a weather-related disease, when it considers eligibility for LIP payments.
Thunes fix should stop USDA from arbitrarily denying LIP to certain livestock producers who lose livestock due to weather-related diseases.
Modifying the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA):
Under current FLPMA rules, ranchers with permits on Forest Service Grasslands are not granted the same rights as those who have grazing
permits on Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service land.
Thunes bill would fix this disparity and ensure ranchers who have grazing agreements on Forest Service Grasslands are treated the same as
permittees on other federal lands.
This modification would allow Forest Service Grassland permittees: Please
The right to 10-year permits
contact your
First priority for receipt of a new permit
Congression-
Entitlement to written notice of any permit violations and an opportunity to achieve
compliance before cancellation or suspension proceedings related to the permit al Representatives
Except in cases of emergency, no permit cancellation without two years prior notifi- and urge them to
cation support
To learn more about Thunes 2018 farm bill, including the Soil Health and Senator Thunes
Income Protection Program, the Conservation Program Improvement Act of Farm Bill
2017, and the Commodity Program Improvement Act of 2017, please visit Proposals!
the farm bill section on www.thune.senate.gov.